Nativity Story

Ok-My good friend Nicole would like some ideas for telling the nativity story to her children on Christmas Eve. What scripture passages do you read? What do you do? Lets post some ideas for her-and soon! It's almost Christmas!!! I can hardly believe it!

The Hobby Barrel

My sister sent me this link. A fun crafty site to check out!
www.thehobbybarrel.com

The Comfy Couch

My sister wanted to see if anyone out there has any great ideas for a super comfortable couch that could use a little updating. 
"We have some really ugly, ugly most comfortable couches ever. I have a love hate relationship with them. I tried to buy some slip covers but they fit horrible and always slipped off and get tangled.I hated them more than the ugly fabric on the couch."
Does anybody know what she could try? She is handy with a sewing machine but doesn't know much about reupholstering. She would love any suggestions!

Ho Ho Holiday Baking

Recently my neighbor had the kids over to make gingerbread houses. They turned out so cute and she shared some great tips with me, so I thought I would share them with you!
First, instead of baking actual gingerbread, she makes sugar cookie dough and dyes it brown (because its easier to work with and the kids like it a lot more). Then she bakes it for a minute longer than a regular sugar cookie (so its not so soft and will be a sturdier building material). HERE is the recipe she uses for the sugar cookie dough.
Get creative with your decorations. Waffle pretzels make great windows and fences. Use lifesavers as wreaths. Make a marshmallow snowman in the yard. Do you have any ideas?
And if you just have too much to do already and don't have time to be baking in the kitchen-don't forget about the graham cracker gingerbread house. They are just as fun to make and its much easier on you. Just use a serrated knife to saw through the crackers and then design and build your structure.
A word about icing-You need to use royal icing so it will harden and luckily it is so simple to make. A lot of recipes say to use egg whites and I always get nervous about the raw egg thing, so I use meringue powder (found at Michaels with the cake deco stuff). Its still made from egg whites but it has been processed. Just mix 5 Tbl meringue powder and 5 cups powdered sugar. Slowly add 1/2 c. of water and mix until smooth. So easy!
You can pipe the frosting out of a decorating bag, or cut the corner off a ziplock, or get these awesome bottles (also from Michaels). This year I also used the bottles to decorate cookies with the kids and it was GREAT!!! Not nearly as messy and they could be more creative with them. (You might want to make the icing a little runnier so the kids can squeeze it out easily-use only 4 cups of powdered sugar)

And a tip for sugar cookies-Always watch them very closely while baking the first few batches, until you get the timing down. Do not let the bottoms brown like I did on a few batches. It really is so disappointing to have spent all that time rolling and cutting out!

Now I have a question for you. Does anyone know how to make frosting in bold colors? Red is always pink and everything else is pastel. Do I need to use something other than traditional food coloring?

Please comment and share any holiday baking tips you might have.

Abbiesolutely

My sister Abbie just started a new Etsy shop. Check out her patterns for childrens soft chairs, (similar to Pottery Barn's Anywhere chair). She helped me make one for Tyson a few years ago and I wish I had video of when I gave it to him. He was SO excited. It would be a fun project if you can't think of a good gift for your kids for Christmas. She also has printable games to download that she has made. I wish I could be half as crafty as her!
http://www.etsy.com/shop/abbiesolutely

Christmas Card Display Ideas

Do you ever wonder what you can do with all those Christmas cards you receive? I pulled together a few ideas for you. Please comment and share if you have any other genius ideas!

http://paloma81.blogspot.com/2008/12/leave-it-to-domino.html

http://www.countryliving.com/homes/holiday-decorating-1208

http://photojojo.com/store/awesomeness/magnetic-photo-rope

http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/chicago/good-questions/good-questions-holiday-card-display-ideas-070768

http://www.marthastewart.com/photogallery/holiday-organizing-tips?lpgStart=1&currentslide=8&currentChapter=1#ms-global-breadcrumbs

http://www.marthastewart.com/photogallery/holiday-organizing-tips?lpgStart=1&currentslide=7&currentChapter=1#ms-global-breadcrumbs

http://www.marthastewart.com/photogallery/holiday-organizing-tips?lpgStart=1&currentslide=6&currentChapter=1#ms-global-breadcrumbs

Choosing a School for Your Child

One of my good friends will be relocating to a new town soon. She has school aged children, so consequently, her children will be changing schools. She is wondering if we have any advice for researching and choosing good schools for our kids. If anybody has any tips or has been through this before, please comment and share!
Her question:
"What criteria should I look at with the schools when making a decision.  What do the different scores mean and what should I base the decision on.  Do you have any good websites that will help me understand the test scores and what they mean and what I should really look at when deciding?  Any help would be greatly appreciated!"

Sleeping Sound?

I just received a request from a friend to ask about sleep. You may recall a while back I did a post about how much sleep our kids getting (Up With the Birds) but this is an inquiry into how much sleep YOU are getting.
"How much sleep are we getting? Not how much is necessary from a medical standpoint, but how much are we really getting? And are we functioning well with the amount we are getting? I am just curious - because with kiddies getting up in the night, we often don't get ideal sleep - and it would just be interesting to know what other people are getting out there and how that is working out for them. Maybe if we have a bad night and we know others survive with little sleep too, it will give us some motivation! Or maybe people can share tips for having energy when they have gotten little sleep."

I also have done a post about how to get more energy (But...yawn...I'm too tired) if you want to check it out.
But mostly PLEASE drop us a comment and let us know about your sleep and how you deal with it!

'Tis The Season - Tips For Airplane Travel With Kids

Is anyone traveling on an airplane with small children in the next few months? Not only is traveling with kids so physically exhausting, (walking forever with too much stuff in you hands, waiting forever at security, taking all the coats, shoes, and belts off of everyone only to put them all back on again, etc.) it also takes its toll on your nerves! I don't know about you but I hate walking down the airplane aisle with my kids and everyone's eyes narrow and they give you "the look". You know, the one that says, "You brought kids on this flight? They better be quiet and I hope you aren't sitting near me." Its nice to be so welcome :) I always hope to sit by a nice grandma or that rare understanding soul. Most of us have been through this before and have picked up a few tricks and tips, I'm sure. As requested by a good friend, lets try to share what we know so that this travel season can go that much smoother for everyone.

My tips:

• Make sure your kids aren't too hungry or tired. This is the perfect recipe for motion sickness. And you want to do everything you can to avoid a barfing child on a plane. Always listen if they tell you their tummy hurts. Just get the barf bag ready because you will want to make sure you contain it! (I know this from experience!) 

• It does not hurt to travel with a little roll of those bags you put dirty diapers in. They are good for both dirty diapers and barf.

• Pack what you think are more diapers and wipes than you could ever use and then double that amount. You don't want to run out of either! You never know how long you might have to sit on that tarmac. Once we were delayed so long on the tarmac that Tyson pooped in his diaper three times before the plane even took off!  Ooh, that reminds me-also do the same if you have a baby on formula.You do not want to run out of that stuff on a delayed flight.

• I like to be on the aisle if I can. I hate having to climb over people to take my kids to the bathroom all the time. If someone else is on the aisle you can politely ask if they would like to switch with you because you would hate to disturb them when you and your kids will inevitably be crawling over them several times during the flight.
  

OK, those are a few things that I have learned over the last few years. Please leave a comment and share what you have learned and what works for you!

Water Conservation

I actually wanted to post something about this for a while but I was anxious to get my water bill so I could have some quantifiable results to share. I just got the bill and felt victorious! Here is why:
When I got my first water bill after moving into this house (built in 1985) I cringed-100 bucks for ONE month of water. Ouch. It wasn't just the money that made me unhappy, it was the large quantity of water we had used (or wasted!) Soooo, I consulted my local water authority website and discovered they offer many water conservation services. I drove to their office and they gave me new showerheads, faucet aerators, and water displacement bags for the toilet all for FREE! (The toilet bags go in the tank of the toilet and displace water so less is used every time you flush.) After a month of using the FREE devices, my water bill was....are you ready for this....50 bucks! Cut my water bill in half and used almost half the water.
They also offer $100 rebate for each pre-1992 toilet you replace in your home. Nothing like a free toilet. (depending on what kind of toilet you buy.)
You might want to see what programs your local water authority offers, especially if you live in an older house. Could save you money and water.
Here is a list of water saving tips.  Here is how to test if you have any water leaks. And if you have nothing to do you can go Here to play the game that teaches you about saving water.Have fun with it :)
Next to tackle-the electricity bill!

Thanksgiving? Already?

Is anyone out there like me and cannot even believe Thanksgiving is next week?! Ahh! It seems like Halloween was yesterday.  I used to think Thanksgiving was my favorite holiday when my mom cooked the meal. Just lots of food and lazing around. What could be better? Of course, only now do I realize how hard my poor mom worked. Now that I'm too far from my family and I make the meal, I still love Thanksgiving but in a totally different way. I love the challenge of roasting the perfect bird and making the mashed potatoes creamy. I will admit, I do get into it. Anyway, if you've never made the turkey before or if you want to try a new recipe, here is the one I use. Its Martha Stewart's Perfect Roast Turkey and its never failed me. And maybe instead of opening a can of cranberry sauce you could try this cranberry chutney recipe. I made it last year and it was yummy. Too bad I still don't know how to make gravy! Do you have any Thanksgiving recipes you can't live without?

Reading to the Kids

Sometimes I get tired of reading the same books to my kids at night. And I can't believe how many books we bring home from the library are just awful to read and not written well (in my opinion). Just because it rhymes and has a bunny for a main character doesn't make it a good book!
Do you have children's book favorites that I can look for next time I go to the library?

Baby Whine or Baby Sign?

I just got a question from my sister, Amy, about her little girl (16 months, I believe)
"Right now Natalie only knows a few words but she wants to say so much more. She is always crying at me for things but I know she would not if she could ask me for them. I know this is the perfect time to teach her just a little sign language. How do you go about doing this and what few would you recommend."
I took a baby sign class a few years ago and used it with both my children and found it EXTREMELY useful. Here are a few tips I learned from my class:

• Just start out with a few signs at first. Try the words that might interest your child the most and that you will run across frequently. I always started with milk, eat, and more.  But if your child LOVES dogs or crackers or candy or anything else you could start with one of those.(Be sure not to introduce more than a few until they grasp the idea. Don't overwhelm them!)
• Make sure to do the sign right in front of your own face. That is where they will be looking. If you do it down or off to the side they might not notice it as much.
  
• ALWAYS emphasize the spoken word as you sign. Even when they use the sign a lot, you must always say the word aloud. (This reinforces the word and will help them learn to speak it as well. If you do not say the word aloud as you sign, they might not learn how to say the word.)
  
• Don't give up. It takes a while for them to get the concept and it might seem very tedious, but be persistent! (Unless, of course, they learn to say the word. Then you can move on.)
• You can start signing to them as early as you want. In my class they said start at about six months but I got a little bored of it when I was teaching my first because it was a long time before he could sign back. I started a little later on my second child. They also said some kids as young as 8 or 9 months learn to make some signs themselves but I never had any luck until they were closer to a year. You can start when they are a little older too and can already say some words. It will expand their vocab until they are ready to verbalize the words. 
• Watch their hands closely. Sometimes their sign won't look exactly like your sign, but they still might be trying to reproduce it.
  

I know some people worry that teaching babies to sign delays their speech but I don't think this is the case. We all teach our children how to wave good-bye and the still learn to say the word. We shake our head yes and no and they learn those words as well. As long as you emphasize the word as you sign it, I don't think they will have any trouble.
As far as learning the signs here are some places you can look:

• Books, books and books. If you don't want to buy them go to the library. This is a great, free option!
• YouTube has some great videos.
• I have flashcards from Sign Babies that I really like.
• Signing Time makes some baby sign videos but they are a bit spendy. (Again check to see what your library has.)
• Here is a chart online that I found.

Any questions? Did I leave out anything really important? Anyone have any experiences with baby sign that they would like to share? 
Good luck!

Shopping Rules

 Linsy left this as a comment and I think it deserves its own post. If you are lucky enough to know her, you know she always looks great. Thank you Linsy!!!

"I consider myself a bit of a professional shopper and I pride myself on finding excellent clothing for excellent deals. Here are my rules for purchasing clothes:
1
If you don’t love it, don’t buy it. You may like something, but if its not true love, its not worth the investment (no matter how cheap). Why? Because we choose clothes to make us feel fabulous, confident, unique, comfortable – to make us feel our best selves. If you love something, you will feel all these things when you wear it. If you don’t love it, you may wear it for a bit, but chances are it will end up on a hanger toward the back of your closet, never seeing the light of day.   
2
In choosing clothes, personal style is more important than trends. Defining your own personal style is key. What do you love? Vintage. Edgy. Classic. Sporty. Preppy. Natural. Bling. Polished. Bohemian. Sleek. There are endless style mantras, go with what you are drawn too. This does not mean you need to stay within a defined genre. Experiment, go for trends, mix it up – but in the process, always be true to yourself.
3
The next key ingredient is fit. Is it flattering to your body type? If no, don’t get it. (A word on skinny jeans and leggings. I agree with a prior post that they are often very unflattering. However, if worn correctly, very cute. Make sure to pair with flats or boots (not sneakers, loafers, other casual shoes. Also, if you are pear shaped at all, wear with a long shirt.))
4
After fit, consider fabric quality and color. Do you like the feel of the fabric? Does it drape well on your body? Does it require ironing (I personally do not purchase clothing that needs to be ironed because I won’t do it – therefore, I won’t ever end up wearing it.)
5
Make an investment in good jeans and a nice jacket.
6
I purchase high quality clothes on sale. Always hit the sale rack first and find pieces that meet your criteria. If you love something that is full price, inquire when it will go on sale and follow up. Never sacrifice quality.
7
My favorite stores: JCrew, Nordstrom Rack, Target. That said, I have found pieces all over – from GAP to Saturday’s Markets. Do not be limited by brand – limit your purchases according to what you love.
8
Consider your life, daily activities and purchase accordingly. As a mom, comfort has moved up on my list. If I can’t run in it, bend down in it modestly, or expose it to spit-up – then it doesn’t make the cut. At various stages of life we are at various places on the form vs. function continuum. Examine where you are and purchase accordingly.
9
Keep it simple. Don’t overwhelm yourself with endless choices. A few well-made, well fitting, fabulous pieces are much better than several so-so average ones.

10

Accessorize.

11

Have fun and enjoy fashion. Magnify your own personal groove!"

Fashion Follow Up

 Just as a follow up to Cassie's question in the last post:
I found this blog that I thought is really fun-Sensibly Styled.Check it out for ideas. (If you know of any other sites like this, please share!)
And Cassie, if I were you I would try to arrange to go shopping without the kids.  You might also want to bring a friend with you-someone whose style you admire. Its always nice to have another opinion. :)

Fashion Forward

Here is an excellent question from Cassie:

"I have been working out a lot and losing some weight and now I have to buy new clothes! Yay! But I want to know-Where is eveyone's favorite place to shop? I always see everyone wearing these cute clothes. Where do I find them?! And where have you found some great deals?! Thanks!"

Good job on the weight loss Cassie! I wish I had a good reason like that to go shopping.
My problem is I feel so out of touch with fashion as a stay-at-home mom. I think I either need to order a fashion magazine or go hang out on the college campus to see what everyone is wearing these days. I just don't know what is cute anymore. (How old do I sound?)

Please comment and let us know how you stay stylin'!

Eyebrow Inquiry

I just got this question from Dinah. Please comment if you can help!

"I have decided to "reshape" my eyebrows and I'm afraid that after plucking and waxing them for so many years they aren't growing back full enough for me to reshape.  I have been letting them grow in for at least a month now (my eyebrows look horrible and everyone probably wants to say "um, you need to pluck") and I don't know how much longer I can last.  Any advice?"

Is the Store a Chore?

This is for Rachel who asked that I do a post about online grocery shopping. Sorry it has taken me so long! I thought since so many people are getting sick, it might be a good time to talk about it.

Online grocery shopping in a nutshell:
You go to your local grocers online store. Put items in your online grocery cart. Schedule a drop off time. Pay a fee. Wait at home during the delivery window for your groceries to be delivered. And there you go.

Here are some good reasons you might want to try it:

• You are sick and shouldn't go out.
• Everyone else in the world is sick and you don't want to go out and get sick too.
• You are pregnant and being in the grocery store makes you want to throw up. (That's from experience.)
  
• You are just plain too busy.
• You are an impulse shopper.
• You have a hard time making healthy choices when faced with all the goodies.
• You think you will go crazy if you have to take your brood of crabby, crazy children to the grocery store one more time.
  
• You can save your grocery lists so the online shopping can go really fast after the first few times.
  

Here are some reasons you might prefer to pack up and shop yourselves.

• They pick your produce and I guarantee they won't be as choosy as you.
• You have to pay an extra fee. (Although I feel like I make up for this because I cut out the impulse purchases.) Watch for deals and coupon codes. A lot of times, the fee is waved for first-timers.
• Its hard to tell exactly what you are getting online. Most items just have a tiny thumbnail for a visual so it can be tricky. Sometimes I get little tiny bottles of things, thinking they were much bigger when I ordered them. 
• You have to wait at home during your "window" until they come. This isn't always a problem if you know you are going to be home anyway.
  
• You usually have to wait until the next day to receive your groceries, so if you want something quicker, you better just go.
• The type of stores that generally offer this type of service seem to be a bit more expensive. 
• Your area might not have online shopping yet. It depends on the grocery stores near you. Sorry Abbie-The Piggly Wiggly doesn't deliver :) If there is no grocery delivery you can check into grocery pickup. The idea is the same but instead of them coming to you, you go to them and they will bring the groceries out to your car. 

Here are some places that deliver groceries or have grocery pickup. Don't quote me on this though. It might just depend exactly where you live so you'll want to check it out. (I know my lists are short but I tried all the grocery stores I can think of in all the places I've ever lived. If you know of any, let me know and I will add them to my list.)
Grocery Delivery:
Safeway
New Seasons
Grocery Pickup
Albertsons
Harris Teeter
There are also services out there, not affiliated with the grocery store, that will shop for you and deliver the groceries to your home. I think these are even pricier but might be worth it if you need food and you just can't go out. Google "grocery delivery" and the name of your town and see if you can find one. 
Please share if you have something to add!

Luscious Lashes

I need some new mascara and I'm wondering if anyone has a favorite. There are so many choices and its hard to know which one is good. I hate spending money on any kind of makeup just to find out I don't like it. At Sephora they sell a bag full of mascara samples so you can try them all and pick your favorite. It's called LashStash. How witty is that? I think its a great idea but I figure I can save myself $39 and just ask you. The most important mascara features for me; doesn't clump, doesn't make dark circles, and isn't too expensive. Thanks!

Undo Send

Let me just start this post with a quick story about myself. One day I was emailing my landlady's contact information to a friend and this is what I wrote:
"Here is Karen's email. I just realized I don't even know her last name. I'll also send her phone number along but if you call her be prepared to chat for a while!"
Just as I pushed SEND, I realized that Karen's email address was still in the "TO" box. It was too late! It was sent to Karen! AHHH!!! (I used the "TO" box to look up Karen's address and then meant to delete it, but FORGOT!)
So that day I learned two things.
1) Its not a good idea to send less-than-positive remarks in written form over the internet.
2) Enable "Undo Send" on my gmail account. It gives you a couple of extra seconds to undo your email after you hit send.
It's super easy to enable. If you are signed in to your email account look at the options in the top right corner. There should be a little icon of a beaker. Click on it and it will take you to Google Labs. There are tons of features you can enable here. Just scroll until you find "Undo Send" and click to enable. Voila-Now you can take back the rude things you accidentally send in your emails!
Does anyone know if Yahoo or Hotmail has a feature like this?
Does anyone else have a Lab from gmail that they love?

Countdown to Halloween

 Ok-I tried again and this time I found several blogs and websites with great Halloween costume and decoration ideas. Let me know if you have any more and I will add to the list.

Inchmark

Martha Stewart

The Holiday Queen

Family Fun

Parents.com

Creepy Cupcakes

365 Halloween

Puking Pastilles

If you have boys...

I was reading blogs the other night and found something that looked very fun. I made a whole link list about hair for girls and nothing for people who only have boys. Well, here you are! My friend Larissa has a very fun blog that I like to read. http://zitzmanfam.blogspot.com/ She posts yummy recipes and she throws fabulous birthday parties and has a lot of fun ideas. I particularly liked this post and she said I could share :)
Sewing Project for Boys Are Rare
Anyone else sew for their boys? We'd love to know what you've done.

All I Want For Christmas

Really is it time to think of Christmas shopping already??? But its always so hard to think of something useful, tasteful, original, AND inexpensive for all those people on my list. Well, Julie sent me this fabulous idea for Christmas that can eliminate the headache of Christmas shopping AND make the holiday more meaningful:
"For Christmas this year buy less things and make a charitable donation instead." Here is a link to her blog post that lists some worthy causes. Thanks Julie!

http://jandjklandfamily.blogspot.com/2009/10/all-i-want-for-christmas.html

Please comment if you have additional causes OR if you have ideas for making the holidays more about service and less about gift giving.

Perfect Pumpkins

It is that time to head out with the family and find that perfect Halloween pumpkin. Of course, you could grab some at the grocery store or you could make some great memories at the pumpkin patch.  Click Here for a list of pumpkin patches in your area.
Here are some tips that I've learned over the last few years to avoid huge crowds (if its a very popular pumpkin patch):
Go early in the month before the pumpkins get picked over.
If at all possible, go on a weekday.
If you go on the weekend, try to get there right when it opens.
If you have a favorite pumpkin patch-please share!

Baby Belly

I was looking at my lower abdomen the other day and realized it still looks as if attacked by animals because the stretch marks are so bad. Its been two and a half years since I was pregnant but its still not looking good. I'm wondering if anybody knows of anything that I can do for my stretch marks at this point. And what are your tricks for not getting them in the first place?
While thinking about this I remembered some tips my sister gave me on how to lose the little lower abdomen bulge that so many mothers have. Here it is for you:


How to shape up after delivery
by Madline Johnson

Before you give up on losing the belly fat that's still lingering months after the birth of your baby--wait. You may need abdominal moves that better target the real cause of your pooching tummy, says Julie Tupler, R.N., a childbirth educator and certified fitness trainer. Her book, Lose Your Mummy Tummy, details her belly-flattening program.
During pregnancy, your expanding uterus pushes apart the vertical abdominal muscles and weakens the thin band of tissue that connects them. After delivery, the separation may not completely close, allowing the internal organs to bulge. Over time, this can lead to poor posture and lower-back pain. Traditional ab exercises may not help if they don't target the deeper, horizontal layer of muscle, which is what helps pull the vertical muscles together, says Tupler.
To reunite the separated halves, Tupler recommends that new moms who have their doctor's okay start these daily exercises within 24 hours of giving birth. You'll see less pooch in as little as six weeks.
Elevators
Sit in a chair with one hand above your navel and one below so you can feel your abs moving in and out. Imagine that your belly is an elevator and inhale deeply through your nose, expanding your middle fully; this is the "first floor." Now exhale through your mouth, pulling your navel toward your spine; this is the "fifth floor." Do five little squeezes, picturing your navel going out the back of your spine; this is the "sixth floor." Do 10 times.
Contractions
Sit in a chair, one hand above your navel and one below. Inhale and expand your belly, bring it back about halfway (thirdy floor), then exhale and pull your navel in toward your spine (fifth floor). Squeeze your belly and hold for a moment, counting aloud one. Release back to the third floor. Do 100 quick repetitions.
Standing Pelvic Tilts
Stand with legs hip-width and knees slightly bent. Rest your hands on your upper thighs. Inhale, then as you exhale, draw your abs in toward your spine and simultaneously tilt your pelvis forward by contracting your butt and pointing your tailbone down. Hold for a count of five. Do ten times. 

Yahoo for Yahtzee

Here is another idea from my fabulous sister. A super cheap way to have fun with the fam.

"We have been playing a lot of Yahtzee recently. I bought a set of five dice at Walmart for $1.24 and have been printing off the score cards from the internet. That's all you need."

Click Here for the score card.


Have fun! (If you have any other fun family ideas or games please share!)

Updated Blogger Editor

Just in case you don't already know...
There is a new editor for blogger. Just click the settings tab, then the basic tab. Scroll to the bottom until it says "Global Settings" and click the radio button for the updated editor.
You can read about the new improvements HERE
Happy Blogging!

Halloween Costume Ideas

Originally, I sat down to try to compile a link list of cute Halloween costume ideas, especially for the kids. I failed. I failed big time. I can't even find anything that has cute ideas. If you have found a site that has even one good Halloween Costume idea send it my way. I think the internet search for this category is so frustrating because "Halloween Costumes" is such a popular search. It makes it very difficult to wade through all the junky sites to find something good. Please let us know if you have found one! OR share your idea here. I'll post a few things I've done in the past 

Last year the kids were Super Why and Princess Presto. I made both of these costumes by adapting other patterns. The mask was made out of cardboard, hot glue, and fabric. The logo was downloaded and printed on iron-on paper. Throw some capes on and you've got reading super heros!

Here we have a tinkerbell complete with wings from the dollar spot and pom poms attached to her shoes.(I know its not a very good picture but I didn't have many to choose from)

The first kids costume I ever made. Just black pants and shirt with 4 pairs of purple socks. (One for babies feet, one for babies hands, and two pairs for the other legs. Body suit was sewn out of purple fur and four black legs were attached at the sides. Pretty easy as far as sewing goes.

And my personal favorite-The Ewok. This was the best and the easiest costume I've ever made (No sewing involved as long as you can find a bear outfit). Its just a bear costume (from Children's Place I think) with a burlap hood that I fashioned. I just added a few little decorations with beads and leather strips and there you have it-an Ewok.

Ok-If you have a good idea or know where we can find good ideas, post them here!

How Do I Start?-Photography

This is from my good and talented friend Rachel. Thanks Rach!

"I've always been a picture-taking person. I have a terrible memory and taking pictures helps cure me of that. But I didn't realize what poor quality my pictures were, nor did I care, until I had kids. Then all of a sudden, my point-and-shoot that only shot literally 3 times per minute, became less than sufficient. I got so frustrated with that camera, which also craved batteries every other day, for missing so many precious moments of my kids. I needed a camera that could do quick continuous shots. I also realized that standing in line at Wal-Mart with 2 kids to edit all my photos on their little machine just wasn't going to work anymore. I had a lot to learn!

Like a lot of people, I first found inspiration through a friend. She took my kids out on a photo shoot one day. Her results, compared to mine, were amazing. I told myself I wanted to learn how to do that. But I had no idea that so much time and money goes into learning how to take the kind of pictures I wanted to! Baby steps...

I started with the camera. So many people prefer a point and shoot because they are much more convenient, but my opinion is that if you care enough about quality pictures, you'll bite the bullet and start lugging around an SLR camera anyway. Its been so worth it to me! I have a Nikon D-40. It's a great starter camera and very lightweight for what it is. Before I spent the money, I did tons of research to help guide me to the right camera for me. Once you have an SLR camera, its so easy to keep it in auto. The difference between your point-and-shoot is already lightyears! But if you really want to learn how to use your camera--after all you did invest a lot of money-- then its fun to start learning about the manual settings. You'll have so much more creative control, like being able to focus on your subject while blurring the background. Once you learn how to take good pictures inside your camera (and the more expensice camera you get, the more cool stuff it can do), then its fun to learn how to edit. This is still my weakest area. I use Photoshop Elements, Google's Picasa, and Paint.net. There are several ways to edit, and my next goal is to learn how to apply "actions" to my photos. But again, that's where things start to get expensive!

The best advice I can give is to really be passionate about learning. Figure out how your camera works. Hardly a day goes by where I don't take a round of pictures. Even if we're not doing anything exciting, I just take pics to experiment. Practice with your camera is the best way to improve. I also talk to anyone I know who has photography expertise and is willing to share. Even if its only for 5 minutes, I always learn something. I've talked to all the guys at Best Buy and Ritz (hey, that's where they can show you stuff on your camera, and its free). I am constantly inspired by other mom photographers, and look at their blogs often. I have read the camera manual, and the one from Ken Rockwell, a few times. I also have read one book. There's so much more I'd like to do, like take a real class, but for the moment, I'm trying to learn all I can for free.

Here is a list of things that have inspired and helped me:
www.kenrockwell.com- great info on equipment
www.thepioneerwoman.com/photography- great photoshop tips
www.jordankrogmanphotography.blogspot.com- amazing pictures
www.photographybybrinn.com- she offered an online class that was great! its over now, but all the info is still there. leave a comment on her blog if you'd like an invite.
www.sheenaspics.blogspot.com- really good at working with light
Photographing Children, by Ginny Felch and Allison Tyler Jones
My camera's manual
Practice, practice, practice!"

Requesting Recipes

I just got a request from Cassie
"...calling for healthy recipes that the whole family will love....and especially the little people. I would love to get some new recipes that others use or recipe blogs they might follow. I need some fresh recipes to work from. I feel mine are getting a little over done."
OK-now some of you might not want to actually get out of your chair to get a recipe to type but I think you should. If we all do it we can have a bunch of recipes on here. I know I can use some fun new recipes and I bet you can do. So....Get up and get one! We'll be waiting right here when you get back...
Here is one I like to make. The kids like it because its "peanut butter noodles" and I like it because its quick and you can keep all the ingredients on hand.

Thai Peanut Pasta
Linquini

1 lb. cooked and cubed chicken
Pineapple chunks drained
Handful of snow peas
Sauce:
1/2 c. chicken broth
1/4 c. peanut butter
1/4 tsp. crushed red peppers
2 T lime juice
1 garlic clove
1 T soy sauce
Cook pasta, and then drain in colander. Put snow peas and chicken cooked and cubed in colander. Put back in pan and add pineapple, and add the sauce.
Sauce:
Heat chicken broth and peanut putter until PB melts. Then add other ingredients and pour on pasta. 


And here is one more that I love. Its from a Rachel Ray 30 minute meals cookbook and its perfect for the fall. (For those of you surprised that I like a chili recipe-notice there are no beans!)


Manly Man's Chili
2 Tbl corn oil
1 large onion
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 1/2 lbs ground sirloin
Montreal steak seasoning
1/2 bottle beer (6oz) (I just use beef broth)
14 oz beef broth
6 oz tomato paste
1 1/2 Tbl chili powder
1 tsp cumin
2 oz smoky bbq sauce
2 oz hot sauce (3 Tbl)
6 oz smoked cheddar cheese

Heat oil, saute onion and garlic 3-5 minutes.
Add beef and brown. Season, add beer and reduce by half. Stir in broth, paste, chili powder, cumin, bbq sauce, hot sauce. Simmer 10 mins.
Top with fritos and green onions. 

Face lift

Collectively Genius will be getting a face lift over the next little while. Be patient as I play around with it! Thanks!

Silver Biotics

I got this from Jennifer. Anyone out there know anything you can tell her?

"Silver Biotics. Has anyone heard of it? I am looking for more info from people who like it and those who don't.
Silver Biotics is an over the counter biotic. The labels says "Doctor Recommended, Natural Alternative: is a non-adaptagenic and may be used everyday as your natural solution to support your body's immune system for a healthier you. Supports your immune system's defense against colds, sinus, throat, skin, ear, respiratory, yeast gastrointestinal, and food poisoning." It cost $20 for an 8 fl. oz bottle and 1/2-2 tsp is a recommended dose for children to adults and a child could drink the whole bottle and not overdose. YET, it claims to kill bacteria for UTI's, Strep, Pink Eye, Staph Infection, and even Swine Flu faster and more effective that prescription anti biotics. It is ingested but can also be applied to infections or dropped into eyes, etc.

My attraction to this product, if it IS safe and DOES work is that it's cheaper than a doctors visit. I hate paying $30 to go to the doctor when I KNOW they have pink eye, or strep, or a UTI, etc.

Does this really work and can I use it to cure the things I KNOW my kids have instead of going to the doctor? What do you think?"

How Do I Start?

Is there ever anything you ever want to learn how to do but don't know how to get started? I feel that way about a lot of things. So...I decided I'm going to start asking people to tell us how they got started. First up is how my sister started learning Photoshop Elements (See the post below). Coming soon...photography.
Let me know if there is anything you are interested in and I'll see if I can find someone to tell us how to get started.

How Do I Start?-Photoshop Elements

From my sister Abbie:

"Digital Scrapbooking in PSE (Photoshop Elements)

I started digiscraping about three years ago after a friend of a friend showed us both the very basics of making a digital layout. There are many things I have done since then to learn more. The most helpful have been tutorials on the internet. Shabby Princess has several tutorials, but I would especially recommend 'Creating Your First Layout Using Photoshop Elements' as a great place for a very beginner to start.

http://www.theshabbyshoppe.com/tutorials/software_tutorials.asp

By the way, Shabby Princess has the best free downloads out there. Check them out.

http://www.shabbyprincess.com/downloads.asp

Jessica Sprague also has really good free tutorials. Here is a link to the index (she also has great free stuff at the bottom of this index). I went through each tutorial and learned a ton.

http://spraguelab.squarespace.com/photoshop-friday-index/

Jessica also teaches great online classes if you want to learn even more. I have taken several and think they were well worth the cost.

http://www.jessicasprague.com

Jessica also has several books published by Creating Keepsakes called Computer Tricks for Scrapbooking. I have two and would like the third.

http://www.creatingkeepsakes.com/issues/Computer_Tricks

I used to subscribe to magazine called Digital Scrapbooking that had good information and layout ideas, but they no longer publish the magazine. I think you can browse past issues here:

http://www.digitalscrapbooking.com/issues/index.html

I also checked out a few books from my library system on PSE that helped me learn a few more things about Elements in general, especially the organizer. An organizer with tagged items is a must for a digital scrapbooker. My library didn't have any books on digital scrapbooking when I got started, but I just checked again and they now have a Dummies book and several others that might be useful.

Also, there are many galleries and other places out there where people show off their work. I think they are great places to get ideas.

And last but not least, just experiment and play around with the program. Check out all the options under each menu. Try out all the different kinds of adjustment layer and photo effects, etc. You can really learn a lot that way."

Ziploc Omlet

Cindy sent me this yummy idea. I have actually seen this before but I forgot about it until she sent me this email. Once, when I was camping, some people camping near us made these. If everything is prepared before, all you need is boiled water!

"Have guests write their name on a quart-size Ziploc freezer bag with permanent marker.

Crack 2 eggs (large or extra-large) into the bag (not more than 2) shake to combine them.

Put out a variety of ingredients such as: cheeses, ham, onion, green pepper, tomato, hash browns, salsa, etc.

Each guest adds prepared ingredients of choice to their bag and shake. Make sure to get the air out of the bag and zip it up.

Place the bags into rolling, boiling water for exactly 13 minutes [we did 15 minutes]. You can usually cook 6-8 omelets in a large pot. For more, make another pot of boiling water.

Open the bags and the omelet will roll out easily. Be prepared for everyone to be amazed.

Nice to serve with fresh fruit and coffee cake; everyone gets involved in the process and a great conversation piece.

Imagine having these ready the night before, and putting the bag in boiling water while you get ready. And in 15 minutes, you've got a nice omelette for a quick breakfast!!!"

Homemade Electrolyte Drink

Electrolyte Drink
1 quart water
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp table salt
3-4 Tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt substitute (can be found in the grocery store near the salt)
Mix well. Can be flavored with lemon juice or sugar-free KoolAid.
If someone is having trouble keeping down any fluids, this can be spoon fed. Some will prefer it cold, others just room temperature.

Icky Sicky

Last week I was sick. Really sick. I barely left my house for seven days and I couldn't accomplish pretty much anything. Needless to say, my house was trashed and I was so far behind on my to-do list. Plus we missed out on a lot of end-of-summer activities. I'm not sure what I had but I think it was some kind of flu. Who knows? So this post is my warning to you-Don't get sick! And if you do I have a few tips that might make it a bit easier on you. Its really just best to prevent it from ever happening though. Here is what you can learn from my horrible week and maybe it can help you! (You probably already know all of this, so its really just a reminder.)

Wash your hands (and your kid's hands) all the time! Before eating, after using the bathroom, after changing diapers, etc. You get the idea.
If you can't be by soap and water, make sure you stock up on hand sanitizer. (Buy tons now because last year when the swine flu started going around it was sold out everywhere.) Keep a big thing of it in your car or your purse. Every time you get back in the car from being somewhere-use it! After every store, after church, after being at a friends house, after school, after shaking people's hands, etc. It may seem like a pain but I promise being sick for a week is a bigger pain! Note: if you are putting hand sanitizer on your kids hands make sure you watch them until it is dry on their hands. It can be very dangerous for them to ingest.
Of course, there are flu vaccinations too but that is a personal decision so I'm going to leave that up to you to research and decide.

Now to prepare in case you do get sick...Here is what you will want on hand because you won't want to go to the store when you are sick.
Make sure you have...
Adult and children's Tylenol (if you have kids) to keep fevers down.
Cough drops
Kleenex with lotion in it. Your nose will thank you :)
Your drink of choice when you have a super sore throat (mine is orange juice).
You may want some NyQuil or DayQuil but I can't really take that stuff because it makes me feel all weird inside.
Already prepared food-freezer meals, lunchables. You won't want to prepare food for your family if you are sick. You'll want to stay out of the kitchen as much as possible so you don't spread your germs.
An electrolyte drink in case there is vomiting or diarrhea involved. My sister sent me a recipe to make your own electrolyte drink which I will post next.

Ok-now its up to you to try to keep your family healthy as much as you can but be prepared just in case sickness strikes. And remember its very important to stay home and away from others so you don't spread it around. I wish whomever passed it to me had done that! (If you are sick don't forget about grocery delivery. Its often free for first timers.)

If you do get sick you can borrow the mantra that I used-"This too shall pass." It helped me feel a little better :)

And for your convenience, here is the link to the CDCs website about the H1N1 flu (swine flu) so you have somewhere to reference if you suspect you may have it.
http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/general_info.htm

Coupons Link List

I've added more links to my Coupons Link List and will just keep it as a post like my other lists. Just click on the link the says "The List" under Coupons Link List to access it. Simple as that. I love link lists. How handy are they?
Old Navy Weekly
Coupons.com
Savvy Shopper
Pinching Your Pennies
Fabulessly Frugal
Betty Crocker
Eat Better America
SmartSource
Grocery Smarts
Printable-Coupons
P&G eSaver
Red Plum
Target
She Spots Smart
Summer and Tyson blog

Craft Link List

I'm really into compiling link lists right now (if you can't tell). Asking you is seriously the BEST way to get great links. So today I'd like to make a crafty blog link list. Here are a few that I know of. What are your favorites?
http://www.homemadebyjill.blogspot.com/
http://www.ohdeedoh.com/
http://vintagericrac.blogspot.com/
http://www.craftpad.com/
http://howaboutorange.blogspot.com/
http://www.oneprettything.com/
http://www.skiptomylou.org/
http://familyfun.go.com/
http://crapivemade.blogspot.com/
http://thirtyhandmadedays.blogspot.com/
http://todayscreativeblog.blogspot.com/
http://littlenannygoat.blogspot.com/
http://sometimescrafter.blogspot.com/
http://theidearoom.blogspot.com/
http://inchmark.squarespace.com/
http://inspiredliving.squarespace.com/
http://littlebirdiesecrets.blogspot.com/ 
http://belladia.typepad.com/crafty_crow/
http://www.twigandthistle.com/blog/

I wonder if her house is clean...

After moving into a pretty dirty place I pulled out my Queen of Clean books to give me a hand. I think these books are really useful so I thought I would let you know about them if you've never heard. The Queen of Clean has devoted her life to finding the best ways to clean things. She has written a bunch of books, Talking Dirty with the Queen of Clean, Talking Dirty Laundry With the Queen of Clean, A Queen for All Seasons, and The Queen of Clean Conquers Clutter. She has also compiled all these into one big book called How the Queen Cleans Everything. For those of you who know me well you know these books are my kind of reading material!
She pretty much tells you what the best way is to clean pretty much anything. An added bonus, most of the products she uses are natural (baking soda, vinegar, etc.). Now all I need is the motivation to keep everything clean! Any ideas with that one?

Little Girl Hair Link List

OK-Thanks to Becky and Rachel we now have a huge list of hair sites for little girls. I'm pretty sure nobody will run out of ideas now!
http://shortyrocksitshort.blogspot.com/
http://jackienkassiesdos.blogspot.com/
http://mydaughtershair.blogspot.com/
http://piggiesnponies.blogspot.com/
http://www.girlydohairstyles.com/
http://hairbetweenmyfingers.blogspot.com/
http://babesinhairland.blogspot.com/
http://www.girlydohairstyles.com/
http://cute2tryhairdos.blogspot.com/
http://shedoeshair.blogspot.com/
http://pipershairdos.blogspot.com/
http://bowznstuff.blogspot.com/
http://hair4myprincess.blogspot.com/
http://curlsandcowlicks.blogspot.com/
http://hairbetweenmyfingers.blogspot.com/
http://chic-clipshair.blogspot.com/
http://cutegirlshairstyles.blogspot.com/
http://maddiegirlfashions.blogspot.com/
http://pixiehair.blogspot.com/
http://thewrighthair.blogspot.com/
http://shimmyshimmyhairstyles.blogspot.com/
http://girlscurls.blogspot.com/
http://tinydiva.blogspot.com/

Since we are talking about hair...

My sister sent me this link for a blog about fixing little girl's hair. She doesn't maintain the site anymore but there are still tons of ideas on it. Some of them look a bit fancy and I'm not sure Eliza would hold still that long but maybe someday?
http://shedoeshair.blogspot.com/
If anyone knows of any other sites like this one could you send it to me. I'm always looking for new ideas for Eliza's hair. OR, (I know this is a lot to ask) if you can send me a picture of your favorite way of fixing your kids hair (boy or girl) maybe I can make a post on here of good hair ideas for the kiddos.

Help My Hair!!!

For those of you who don't know, I just barely moved from Oregon to Virginia and I have encountered two problems with my hair. One problem I expected, the other I did not. Problem number one-I have naturally frizzy hair by nature. That combined with humidity and it is a bit of a disaster. Anyone have a frizz product that they swear by? It would be great to have something that works when my hair is curly and something that works when I want my hair to be straight. (Although, I might have to give that up for a while if I can't find anything to help.)
My second problem is the worst. I am used to getting out of the shower and running a pick easily through my wet hair. Its never tangled or knotted. It just easily slides down. Since I moved into this house, when I get out of the shower my hair is a tangled mess. It takes me ten minutes to comb through it, section by section. Its really awful and I am not sure why it is like that. My only guess is it has to be the water. I can't really figure out anything that could make that big of a difference. I am using the some conditioner I was using before I moved. I even bought a new bottle just to be sure. Does anyone have any idea what I can do for this or any idea of what could be causing this besides the water? If I can't fix it I might just buzz my head one day so please help!

Next thing I know he'll be going off to college...

OK-I'm back now. We are all moved and everything is mostly unpacked (but still very messy). Of course, it will take me a super long time of working on the house until I feel comfortable in it but at the worst of it is behind me!
Which means....
...Time for blogging again :)
Here is my newest question for everyone out there:
Tyson starts full day kindergarten in a few weeks. I gotta be honest, I'm a little freaked out. I had absolutely no problems dropping him off at preschool but that seemed so different; small class with two teachers, only a few hours a couple of times a week. Now he will go to school for 6 1/2 hours 5 days a week and he just turned 5 a month ago! I am wondering if anyone has any tips for me on how to make the transition easier for both of us. Or maybe even stories you have when your children started school, so I know what to be prepared for. It is crazy that he is going to school already. I still can barely believe it!

Road Trip

Just wanted to let you know I'm not neglecting the blog. I have just been pretty busy with moving and visiting family. I am currently in the middle of a 2 1/2 week trip all the way across the country to our new home in the east. And yes, we are driving with our children the whole way. Its going to be more than 3000 miles because we are not exactly taking the quickest route as we will be visiting family along the way. So this brings me to the question I would like to ask all you resourceful people out there. Is there anything you do to make road trips with small children more fun? Of course, I have the DVD player and some coloring books and small toys and plenty of snacks but if you know of anything else that can help I would very much appreciate it. I think after 50+ hours in the car we might run out of things to do!

Language Lessons

Here is a good question from Kristi. This is something I'm concerned about too.

"My son is about to start kindergarten and I am worried about the bad language that he’ll hear at school. How do I teach him about bad words without giving him more information than he needs? I don’t really want to list off every bad word in the dictionary, but I feel like he needs to know something about them. Help!"

Friday's Faves: Magazines

Anyone subscribe to a magazine that they love and they actually read and find useful? I don't really get any magazines right now but would if there was a great one I'm missing out on!

The Worn Out Word

Here is a question from Sarah:
"What is a good idea for old/worn out scriptures? Scott and I both have a set or two that we just don't know what to do with. We thought of giving them to investigators, but one set is too worn for that to be a good idea. I thought of saving one for Emma, but that's quite a few years away before she starts to need them, and she probably wants her own set with her name. Anyway, I'm at a loss, since I doubt a Used bookstore would take them, or the library (my fail-safes for other books)."

The Paper Problem

I recently ran across this article about what to do with children's artwork and projects. It had some great ideas so I thought I'd do a post about it.
Here is what we did this year at our house. I put all of Tyson's stuff from preschool, storytime, church, etc. in a box and kept it over the course of the school year. In June we got the box down and took a couple of hundred pictures of him with all of his projects. (It's digital-they are free!) Then, he helped me take most things to the trash. We saved a few of the favorites and put them in a binder. He was totally okay with it once I explained that we don't have room to keep everything and he will be able to look at it all whenever he wants in the pictures. Eventually I plan to make a photo book out of the pictures.

Here is a picture of something my sister has done. She has an unfinished basement so she just wallpapered her walls with artwork. She also keeps the favorites in notebooks, though.
Here are a few more ideas my sister gave me:
Magnetic paint: An easy way to hang up and display artwork.
Ikea has a bunch of cool magnet strips you could hang on the wall for displaying artwork. This one http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/30117169 is only $0.99!
Scan artwork and just keep it in a file on the computer. Make photo books of the best pieces every so often.

Any more ideas out there? What do you do to manage the TONS of papers your kids bring home?

Videos on the Blog

From Rachel:
"I am having a dickens of a time getting a video posted on my blog. Basic question, how do you do it?

Here's what I've gone through already... I learned how to convert my .mod files to .avi since blogger only accepts certain kinds. I've edited my video to less than 100MB since that's the limit blogger accepts. I've tried uploading it to blogger by clicking on "new post" and the video link. For about 3 hours, it says the video will appear when its complete, but it never happens. I have no idea what the deal is!!!

Any blog video geniuses out there?"

Move It or Lose It

If you know me well, you know that I have the tendency to stress out and worry about a lot of things. You want to know what the current worry is? MOVING!!! I have moved before-several times, in fact. But never across the WHOLE ENTIRE COUNTRY! Its not quite a coast to coast move, but pretty dang close. When we were first married we moved across town several times. Back then I would just put all my dishes in a laundry basket and drive really carefully to my new house. No kidding. Then when we moved to Portland, Derek's company packed us and moved our stuff here. It really spoiled me. Now I'm getting ready to move in a few weeks and I want your help! No, you don't have to load my dresser on a moving truck. I just need your tips and advice. I know lots of you have moved many, many times. What do you know that I don't know? Besides the obvious (boxes and tape) what do I need to get? Anything that makes the process any easier or more efficient? Oh, and I'm fully aware that there is a good chance I'm worrying over nothing. Its not rocket science right? You put stuff in boxes and put it on a truck. But just in case. I have to ask.

Friday's Faves-Great Books

For today's favorite I thought "books" would be a great topic. I love books-self help, fiction, non-fiction. You name it. I don't know if this is my favorite book, necessarily, but it is a great book. "Catch a Fish, Throw a Ball, Fly a Kite: 21 Timeless Skills Every Child Should Know (and any parent can teach!)" by Jeffrey Lee.
I think the long title pretty much explains what the book is about.
If you are interested you can buy it used on Amazon for 1 cent (plus shipping)!
So what is your favorite book that is in your shelf? It can be any kind of book just one that you love. Please share! I don't want to miss out on the great reads out there.

Just Go to Sleep Already!

No, this post is not about my children, its about my computer.
Anybody out there that is computer savvy know why my computer refuses to go on standby or hibernate? I have windows XP and I go to "power options" on the control panel and pick the "energy star" option. It is supposed to go on standby after 20 minutes and hibernate after 1 hour. "Enable Hibernation" is clicked and I have enough disk space. Even when I go to the start button, click "turn of computer" and click "standby" it does not work. It goes to standby for about 1 second before it just comes back on again. I hate listening to it running all day and I hate knowing I'm wasting all that power. Any ideas?

Can't find a cute one? Make Your Own!

A lot of people have asked me how to build custom backgrounds on blogs. Now, I would type all the directions here but my friend Jessica has already done it on her super cute blog! Check out the link to the post on her blog.
http://jessicabills.blogspot.com/2008/09/how-to-make-cute-background.html
You do have to have some kind of photo editing software (like Photoshop Elements-Costco has a $30 off coupon right now for Elements 7.0) and a web album (like Photobucket or Picasa Web Albums). And you might want to check out my post here for a huge list of places you can go to download the different elements you might need to make your blog super cute too. Have fun!

Tired of Titanic?

Anyone sick of their old movies, video games, books, and CD's? Instead of giving them away or trying to sell them for next to nothing-trade them! My friend told me about the site Swaptree that will help you out with this. I already tried it with some Wii games and it worked splendidly. What you do is sign up for an account and then you start making two lists; things you want and things you have. Then Swaptree will search all the other user's lists and see if they can find a trade for you. They will email you if they find a trade and you can decide to accept or reject the trade. If you accept it, you just mail the item to the address they give you and wait for your item to arrive!

Hummingbird Feeders

From Jennifer:

"We love having a hummingbird feeder hanging in front of our windows. We didn't even know there were hummingbirds in Texas until one flew right into my husbands office window, and died! We've bought numerous feeders since (they don't seem to last long,) and I've noticed they don't print a recipe with the feeders anymore, so I thought I'd share one we use. It's easy!

4 parts water (4 cups)
1 part sugar (1 cup)
2 drops red food coloring
dissolve the sugar in 2 cups hot water, add 2 cups cold water, let cool, add food coloring and pour into feeder.

We see them everyday now! Happy Bird Watching!"

Head Lice, Dead Lice

Here's a tip I just got from Jennifer that I'm praying I never have to use! Thanks Jennifer!

"WARNING, This will leave your scratching your head.

I hate to admit it, but recently we had some unwelcomed visitors, hair visitors. My oldest came to me and told me her head itched, so I check and saw nothing. We’ve had lice once before and I knew where to look, behind the ears, the top of the head, and the nap of the neck. Two days later I found them. Yes them, there was a whole city in there, AT THE FRONT of her hair.

It was one hour before church and my husband ran to Wal-Mart to get some shampoo and I took the other two to church. When I got home, he was nitpicking (way to go honey). He had to go to a meeting so I took over and 8 hours, yes a full 8 hours later I finished. Her hair is to BLOOMIN’ thick. Thankfully no one else had it, but that didn’t stop me from bagging up all the pillows, blankets, stuffed animals, etc in the house for a few months (usually a few weeks is fine, but I had to make sure).

I could tell the shampoo wasn’t going to cut it as I was pulling live ones out that I swear were hatching as I pulled. The last time we got it I found a book in the Salt Lake County Library system (best library system EVER) called "Head Lice, Dead Lice" it is a fascinating book about lice. It suggested a olive oil treatment that can also be done to get rid of lice since the shampoo’s often don’t work alone. Well, I couldn’t find the book but I did find this similar (if not the same) olive oil schedule online. http://www.mindspring.com/~options3@mindspring.com/lice.pdf
It is messy so I used old sheets and towels. I washed everyone’s linen EVERYDAY. My washer ran non stop for 1 week. I nit-picked every day. After three days, I never saw anything again but followed the olive oil treatments until the end. Because I did the shampoo too, I only did olive oil on days 2, 3, , 17, 21 with days 1 and 9 lice shampoo.
It’s one of those things you really don’t care to learn about UNTIL IT HAPPENS TO YOU. It may be a LITTLE bit overboard, but it's worked for me twice so why cut corners? Since school just got out, you may want to check."